The Bias Primer
WITH INFLUENCE COME RESPONSIBILITY
Types of Bias
Unconscious bias may be society’s worst kept secret. We all have it – those mental shortcuts we use to make sense of the world – but rarely do we want to discuss or address it. Yet these biases have a real impact on social action and policy worldwide. Bias is a result of the social cues and categorization we use to foster our own self-identity. It allows us to be part of a group. But these social cues and categories have an impact, often unintended, on others.
Qualifier Bias
“Female scientist,” “Muslim lawyer,” “Black president.” While these statements may be true, they highlight an underlying social bias towards what these professions ought to be. The fact that identity descriptors are used to qualify professional achievement reinforces the white-male dominant narrative.
What you label me
HELLO
I AM
Stereotype Bias
Mental shortcuts help us understand our world. They allow us to process the seemingly infinite amount of information we’re confronted with on a daily basis. However, relying too heavily on these comfortable stereotypes over-simplifies the reality of individual’s lives.
Source Bias
Where we get our information matters. We are shaped by our experiences. By relying on familiar subject matter experts, the media perpetuates only one narrative. This denies authenticity and accuracy in representation.
“It is widely believed that…’” is not an approved journalistic source.
Framing Bias
When writers’ ideology and other personal perspectives determine the nature of news. The tone, use of trigger words, and underlying inferences can subconsciously cause readers to adopt writer’s preconceived beliefs.
“Mother of two ends career of important guy.“ (Why does it matter if she is a mother? Is he a father? Why wasn't the question framed as "Father of two ends career of rising academic." These types of bias are very nuanced and harder to code, but they are important.)
Similarly, language can be loaded. For example, media might use a right-wing buzzword like “racial preference” to refer to an affirmative action program. Polls show that this decision makes a huge difference in how the issue is publicly perceived. (In one poll, 70% of respondents said they favored “affirmative action” while only 46% favored “racial preference programs.”)
Confirmation or Confirmatory Bias
A tendency to search for or interpret information in a way that confirms one's preconceptions, leading to statistical errors.
